


Feel Alive

by nickyz



Series: A Story That Begins In Light [3]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Ice Skating, Idiots in Love, Kissing, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Post-Canon Fix-It, anzu is still sad but she'll be okay, they finally talk to each other! wow!, warning for yuugi's horny thoughts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:14:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27805906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nickyz/pseuds/nickyz
Summary: atem finally takes the leap, ending his and yuugi's time as friends
Relationships: Atem/Mutou Yuugi, Mutou Yuugi/Yami Yuugi
Series: A Story That Begins In Light [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1964425
Comments: 3
Kudos: 33





	Feel Alive

"I'm placing a draw four." 

The table shook so erratically that those with full drinks had to whisk them away before they spilled. " _ Atem-kuuun!!! _ "

"Jonouchi-kun, it's just a game…" Honda patted him on the shoulder, his own hand extremely small with only 3 cards. Jonouchi batted the touch away, scowling. 

" _ Bah!  _ He's done that to me  _ three times! _ " Jonouchi held up his cards, which was quite a lot compared to the rest of them. Bakura covered his mouth. "Look at this! What kind of  _ bull- _ "

" _ Jonouchi-kun!" _ Yuugi hissed in fear, and hardly missing a beat, they all glanced at the doorway behind them, fearing the wrath of Mrs. Mutou. It was eerily silent, save for Otogi sipping his drink completely unbothered.

"Are we safe?" Bakura whispered.

"I think so," Yugi replied, and the group around him let out a collective sigh of relief. Jonouchi took a few desperate swigs from his glass of soda, and Anzu massaged her forehead.

"Should we skip straight to the movie?" Otogi was doing some kind of fancy card trick with his giant pile of cards, an unfortunate circumstance of bad luck combined with not having any greens. "This is pretty heated for  _ Uno. _ "

"Be glad  _ Monopoly _ lost the vote, then," Yuugi snickered. "Hey, Atem, what do you…"

Atem was no longer by his side, his cards abandoned  _ face-up  _ on the table. Yuugi flipped them over for him, but it was certain that Jonouchi already stole a look. He scanned the room around them, confused on how Atem had just  _ disappeared.  _ When the hell had that happened?

"Did you guys see where Atem went?" 

"I thought he was just going to refill his drink or something, but he hasn't come back," Honda answered.

Anzu swirled her pink, peach-flavored juice. Jonouchi was sprawled out on the floor beside her. "Maybe he's in the bathroom?" 

"No, I didn't hear anyone go up the stairs…" Yuugi mused. "How about you guys set up the movie, and I go find him? I'm sure at least  _ one _ of you can figure out the microwave."

"If by one, you mean me, then of course," Anzu's lips curled into a slightly devious smile, uncharacteristic and out of place. "Go find your boyfriend." 

Honda and Otogi lurched against the table, and Honda cried out as the harsh movement knocked over Jonouchi's drink. Jonouchi let out a pitiful  _ noooo _ as his two friends laughed and slammed their fists on the table. Bakura was doing his best to keep the cards away from the spill. Yuugi blushed furiously, fists clenched at his sides.

"We're not-!" He spouted indignantly, feeling steam shooting from his ears. He knew his friends weren't laughing to be cruel, but it was a sore spot anyways. "He's just my  _ friend,  _ you guys!"

"Certainly, Yuugi-kun," Bakura said it so plainly that Yuugi couldn't tell if it was sarcasm. A few of them giggled, excluding Yuugi and Jonouchi.

Turning with a harsh breath of air escaping his lips, Yuugi tried to stomp away. The effect was lost on his oversized Kuriboh slippers. Still, Jonouchi looked around the gathered faces with a raised eyebrow.

"He's sensitive to that stuff, you know." He said with a hint of accusation in his tone. 

"What stuff?"

"Being called gay." Jonouchi averted his gaze. "He told me a lot of people bullied him for it. I know it's obvious he's not  _ completely  _ straight, but you don't gotta say it to his face. At least not like that."

"Oh…" Anzu bit her lip. She hadn't meant to hurt his feelings, she was just thinking about Atem's confession, and tried to push Yuugi towards the idea with a friendly little jab. Now she may have just made him even more adverse to it. 

Otogi winced. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, I hope he knows we weren't laughing  _ at  _ him."

"Just at his  _ expense, _ " Bakura frowned. They all uncomfortably shifted, but Anzu was the worst off. She was supposed to be Yuugi's friend, and she just accidentally bullied him! How ironic, when she was the one who protected him from bullies for years.

"I'm going to go talk to him." She stood up from her cushion, feeling an ache from sitting so long. "Don't blow up the popcorn. Or the television."

Jonouchi shot her an award-winning smile. "No promises!"

* * *

Yuugi tried not to feel hurt by the actions of his friends, he knew they were definitely not malicious, but… he was a sensitive guy. His friends told him being sensitive was a good attribute, but to him, it felt more inconvenient than anything. 

As he was about to head up the stairs to see if Atem had gone to grab something from their shared room, he heard a small creak. His head swivelled to the side. Was Atem still downstairs? That would mean he's…

Yuugi made his way over and slowly pushed open the door to the shop, peering out over the counter. The shop was closed, it was both dark out and a Sunday, so he had to squint to see through the darkness. The moon outside illuminated a shape that was almost a direct copy of his own, so Atem was indeed in the shop. But why? It was  _ freezing _ in there.

" _ Mou hitori no boku _ ?" Yuugi called out, and the silhouette shifted. Atem must've turned his head.

" _ Aibou, _ come look. Don't turn the light on." 

Yuugi, confused but trusting, felt his way through the shop with his hands and feet, careful not to bump into any shelves or displays. It got easier to see as he got closer to the window that Atem was sitting in front of, he could actually make out facial features now. It also got so, so much colder. Yuugi shivered and rubbed his arms as he settled down next to Atem. "What's up?"

"Look," Atem pointed through the glass, eyes wide. Yuugi did, and what he saw were tiny flurries of snow, falling down and starting to collect on the frozen ground. "Is that… snow?"

Yuugi smiled. "This is your first time seeing it, isn't it?" Atem nodded, his glasses glinting in the moonlight. "Pretty, right? Just wait until it's covering the ground."

"Mm," Atem agreed in a mumble. His face was focused and sharp now, he must be thinking hard about something. Yuugi patiently waited for him to reach a mental conclusion, rocking back and forth to warm himself up. Atem's cartouche cast light on Yuugi's skin as Atem fiddled with it. "...I'm glad I'm alive."

"P-Pardon?" Yuugi stuttered, not sure he heard his partner right, and also taken very off-guard.

"I'm glad I'm here- that I took that chance at a second life," Atem continued his nervous stimming, clenching and unclenching the silver pendant before moving it around on its chain. "I didn't know how I felt about it until I saw the snow and thought,  _ wow, we didn't have this in Egypt. _ " 

"You're happy you get to see so many new things," Yuugi summarized.

"Almost," Atem fully turned to him, dropping his cartouche, and Yuugi stopped rocking. "I'm happy I get to see more of the world, but I wouldn't care if you weren't there. I'm happy I'm here with  _ you _ ." 

"A-Atem," Yuugi felt his face heating up, and he laughed as his nerves suddenly went into overdrive. "You've told me that before."

"But now I'm certain that you are what made this all worth it." 

Yuugi didn't know what to say, so, words refusing to leave his lips, he wrapped an arm around Atem. Atem seemed surprised, his body stiffening, but as Yuugi made it clear he wasn't going to let go, his tenseness faded. Yuugi swore that feeling Atem relax against his side had to be the best sensation in the world. He burned it into his memory immediately. 

"Don't you have to go back?" Atem said, softer now that the moment had become much more tender.

"Not without you, they sent me on a retrieval mission." 

Atem leaned his head on Yuugi's shoulder and oh god, holy shit, Yuugi was struggling before but now he was absolutely losing it. He could feel Atem's rapid heartbeat, which means Atem could also feel his. He wonders which is beating faster.

"Do you want to go somewhere tomorrow?" Atem's voice was shaky and uncertain, a mirror of how Yuugi's brain felt right now.

"Don't you have a shift at the shop?"

"Not if you say yes," He felt Atem's grin more than he saw it. It made his heart skip a beat or two.

"W-Where exactly would we be going?" 

"Why would I ruin the surprise,  _ aibou _ ?" There was a strange edge to the nickname now, and Yuugi couldn't pinpoint what about it made him want to tackle Atem and squeeze the second life out of him. 

"Okay, you've got me,  _ mou hitori no boku _ ," He hears Atem's breath hitch. "My answer is yes." 

"Great!" Atem instantly shoots away like he's been launched from a slingshot, his muscles must've been coiled so tight. Yuugi, too, rushed to his feet, the weird tension between them fading but not entirely. "And actually, I do still have a shift, but I get off before dark."

"You tricked me?" Yuugi faked being offended, punching Atem in the shoulder. "For shame."

Atem huffed and brushed his shoulder off, crossing his arms. "Just make sure you're ready by the time I am,  _ aibou _ ."

"Mhmm, sure thing," Yuugi feigned indifference, examining his nails.

" _ Aibou _ !" Atem's voice tried to raise, but his throat was too tight from anxiety, resulting in an undignified squeak. He quickly buried his face in his hands as Yuugi laughed and draped his arm across his shoulders, leading him through the dark shop and back to their friends. 

* * *

Anzu rushed away as she heard footsteps approaching, her face burning and adrenaline pumping. Oh no, oh jeez, she just eavesdropped on a _really_ _private_ moment!! 

She had gone to follow Yuugi and apologize, but when she arrived to see him and Atem sitting closely side-by-side, a strange air around them, she thought better of it. What happened next made her want to pull her hair out, even if she did feel still guilty for spying on them in the first place. They were so  _ obviously _ in love and neither one was brave enough to just  _ say it _ ! 

She power-walked back to the living room, announced she was going to use the bathroom, then power-walked away again before anyone could ask why she didn't have Yuugi with her. She narrowly avoided being seen by him and Atem as she ran around a corner, pressing her back to the wall. Yuugi slipped his arm off of Atem just before they got into view of the living room's doorway, and Anzu glared hard. 

The group inside welcomed them back loudly, jumping on them with whatever weird movie choices they'd picked out, and Anzu let herself breathe for a moment. 

Atem seemed like he had a plan, with the way he worded his request- was he taking Yuugi on a date? What kind of date would Atem even come up with… he wasn't confident when it came to romance at all. Which was fair, considering Yuugi was his first crush.

It was possible that he was going with the suggestion she'd given him on the bus ride to their homes, after her confession... after Atem's rejection.

_ "Anzu-chan… if I were to tell  _ aibou _ , how should I do it?" Atem looked at her with thinly veiled vulnerability, her bag in between them in the seat. She still felt awkward about her rejection, and would probably cry and dance so hard it hurt once she got home, but they were still friends. He didn't hate her. It was okay. _

_ "Hmm… well, one date I've always really wanted to go on is ice-skating." _

_ "Ice… skating?" Atem tested the words like he'd never heard the term before, and Anzu smacked her head as she realized he likely hadn't. He was born in the damn desert!  _

_ "It's like roller-skating, but on ice, and using a little metal blade instead of wheels. It's super fun, and  _ totally  _ romantic if you know how to make it that way." Anzu ran a hand through her hair in shame, remembering how she had envisioned Atem holding her in his strong arms as they skated around an ice rink many times late at night, alone in her bed. That future wouldn't come to pass now, at least not for her… but imagining Yuugi in her place, her mental Atem looked content. It wasn't the suave beast she'd imagined him as, it was the  _ real _ him, gentle but brave with a heart only made for Yuugi. She decided then that this was the way things should be. She'd do anything to make sure those two worked out. _

_ "Would he like it?" Atem held his cartouche in a clenched fist. She gave him a calming pat on the head. _

_ "As long as it's with you, he'll like  _ anything. _ "  _

Anzu had to give him points for actually somehow secretly planning a date for himself and Yuugi. He was always so nervous around the idea of being open about his feelings, this was surprisingly forward of him. Maybe their talk finally put a crack in his mind-dam…

Sighing, she peeled herself away from the wall, and headed back to the group. They were waiting for her to be able to start the movie, so she shouldn't keep them any longer. 

She sat down and pretended to be fine, laughing and exchanging quips, welcoming Atem back and also apologizing to Yuugi. They all squeezed onto the couch, Jonouchi and Otogi settling for the floor. Atem and Yuugi were close enough to lean against each other, and Anzu did her very best to give them more space without bumping into Honda. If anyone noticed the slight dampness in her eyes that she struggled to blink away even as the movie started playing, no one said anything. 

* * *

Their friends had gone, Jonouchi practically had to be forced out of the house as always, and things in the Mutou household were quiet. The couch and television were abandoned, the popcorn bowl washed and put away. Even Jonouchi's drink spill was cleaned up now, forgotten until the last second.

Yuugi's hair was dripping slightly from his bath, and he was snuggled up in bed, waiting for Atem to finish his own bath. He could hear the faint sloshing of water through their bedroom wall, it reminded him of the first time Atem had taken a bath in their shared body. Yuugi had wanted him to have the experience, and it was very entertaining coaching him through how to work the taps and what each soap bottle was for. He had scrubbed their body very, very thoroughly, likely an old habit from when he used to get sand stuck all over himself in his previous life.

Yuugi now lived with the knowledge that Atem knew his body very intimately, while Yuugi barely ever saw Atem's. The most he'd seen was during their day at the beach, and recalling the image was a slippery slope down a very bisexual path.

He found himself imagining what may or may not be under that pair of loaned swim trunks, how Atem's more toned muscles struggled to fit into them, how the faintest of scars from incidents in his past marked his dark skin. Yuugi turned over onto his stomach, burying his hot face in his pillow. Why was he thinking like this?!

_ Yes _ , he liked Atem, he was infatuated with him, but they were still just friends and nothing more.  _ Sure _ , he thought about Anzu in many embarrassing ways before, but he stopped doing that when Atem became a permanent resident of his mind and therefore had access to all his thoughts. Now that he was alone in his head, the old habit was coming back, but he couldn't  _ jerk off _ in a shared room! Not when Atem could come back any second.

Admittedly he hadn't done anything of the sort in months. Once again, Atem living inside of him made him put a stop to a lot of things he didn't want to do in front of another person. He was annoyingly desperate, the amount of times he's had to discreetly hide a boner in the time Atem has been back from the dead is almost as much as middle school. God help him, he was going to die at this rate.

He heard his door open and he lifted his head. Atem, thankfully, had a towel wrapped around himself. Yuugi looked away again to let his partner get dressed, horrified by his body's betrayal the moment he saw Atem's bare chest. His blanket was his saving grace. 

He  _ needed _ an instant boner-killer, so he blurted out, "How was your conversation with Anzu-chan?" That was the ticket. Bitter feelings instantly devoured him, and he no longer felt distracted by the inappropriate images of Atem swimming through his mind. Atem paused in the middle of putting a pyjama shirt on, startled by the question.

"It… went well." Atem's eyes swept over him. "Is something wrong?"

"No, no. I'm excited for you, actually! Anzu-chan's very nice, I'm sure she'll be a great girlfriend." He lied through his teeth. He never wanted to lie to Atem, but right now it was necessary. His desire to avoid hurting Atem won out over his desire to be honest.

" _ Aibou _ …" Atem sighed, pulling on his shirt and coming to kneel at Yuugi's bedside. They were eye-level with each other now, Yuugi's head laying on his pillow. His face was twisted in a pout he couldn't shake, betraying his words to Atem. "Did she not tell you I rejected her?"

"You… what?" Yuugi said dumbly.

"I told her I don't like girls, and that there's no hard feelings, and that was that," Atem frowned. "We aren't dating."

"Oh… sorry for assuming," Yuugi mumbled, turning onto his other side. Hurt by Yuugi literally turning his back on him, Atem reached out a hand, paused, then pulled it back. 

"Were you upset with me?"

"No, of course not." He lied again. If Atem had returned Anzu's feelings, he  _ absolutely _ would be petty enough to be mad at Atem. In secret, of course, he'd never say how he felt out loud. Now he was just scarily empty, not at all expecting that Atem told her no. He thought that was just a fantasy in his head, that Atem would want him instead of Anzu. That's not even what his rejection of Anzu meant, it only meant he wasn't interested in girls- Yuugi couldn't get hopeful. "Don't worry about it,  _ mou hitori no boku. _ " 

He knew using Atem's nickname was a low blow to get him to back off, but he just… wanted to be alone for a minute. As alone as he could be. "Okay," Atem spoke quietly, "Goodnight,  _ aibou. _ " 

Yuugi listened to him shuffle into his futon, heart and chest clenching. "Night." 

* * *

The following day passed by uneventfully, Atem was working his shift at Kame Game, and Yuugi was trying but failing to find some way to pass the time until his partner’s shift was up. As conflicted as he was feeling after last night, he still was looking forward to whatever Atem’s surprise was- Atem knew him better than anyone, he’d pick out something fun for sure.

Distracted, he watched the character on the screen of his Gameboy fall into a pit for the fifth time in the last half hour. He didn’t bother pressing continue, instead shutting the device off and tossing it to the side. He buried his face in his pillow, willing time to move faster. He hadn’t dared check the clock recently, it would just make the wait even longer. 

“Yuugi! Come eat, dinner’s ready!” He heard his mother’s voice call up the stairs and seep through the crack under his door. He flung himself out of bed, eager to have something to do. He narrowly avoided tripping on his too-big house slippers and falling down the stairs, ending his sprint in a harsh stumble, his arms flailing to stop his momentum.

Someone grabbed his shoulder and steadied him, and he knew instantly from the gentle but firm force of the grip that it was Atem. “Hi, Atem.” He said on instinct.

“Hello,” Atem greeted back plainly. “I hope the wait hasn’t been too unbearable.”

“ _ Pshh _ , no way, I have plenty of video games to waste time with,” He lied for the millionth time in the last 48 hours. “I assume we’re heading out after dinner…?”

“That’s the plan.”

“Mama and  _ Jii-chan _ already know, right?”

Atem raised an eyebrow. “You think I would keep secrets from  _ her _ ?” 

“You say that as if we didn’t both lie and pretend to be one person for a whole year,” Yuugi rolled his eyes, then gave a tug to Atem’s dumb Kame Game apron with a little smiling turtle on it. “Go take that off, it’s awful.”

“It’s fitting for the job.” 

"You give in too easily, I never let  _ Jii-chan _ put me in this thing," Yuugi was untying it himself, now, and Atem didn't protest. He did give his partner a  _ look _ when Yuugi simply tossed it to the side on the floor. He shrugged and smiled.

"No time to put it with the laundry, gotta eat dinner, right?"

Atem sighs exasperatedly. “How did we ever share a body?”   
  
“Yuugi! Atem! Dinner’s going to get cold!”   
  
The two of them shared a look, nodded, then ran full speed to the kitchen, Yuugi tossing off his ill-fitting slippers to sprint in his socks instead. Yui nearly had a heart attack as she watched them skid into the room, Yuugi going too fast to stop himself, and he went flying into the pantry door with a loud thud. Atem immediately began to fret and rushed to his side, but Sugoroku just laughed at him.   


* * *

"Where are you going?" Yui asked from her armchair, book in hand, a cup of tea on the table beside her. Yuugi was near the door to the shop, tugging on a pair of his nicer sneakers. Atem had already claimed their leather shoes with metal studs, which Yuugi didn't mind too much. 

" _ Mou hitori no boku _ and I are going somewhere," He didn't think twice about the nickname, he and Atem had used them plenty of times in front of Yui by now. Yui raised an eyebrow.

"Will you be back before midnight?"

Yuugi gaped at her. " _ Midnight? _ "

Yui chuckled and sipped her tea. "You're grown boys, I think you can have an extended curfew." 

"What did Atem bribe you with?" Yuugi deadpanned, standing up and tapping the toes of his shoes on the floor.

"Longer shifts at Kame Game." 

" _ Ugh, _ of course," Yuugi grumbled, pulling on his jacket and scarf with more force than necessary. Should he wear gloves, too…? What if Atem wanted to hold hands?  _ Why would he want to hold hands?! _

He grabbed his pair and shoved them in his pocket, just in case. Atem's were already missing from the hook, but they were more for style than keeping warm- fingerless leather gloves couldn't possibly feel very pleasant in winter. His partner really, really liked the look of leather, apparently.

" _ Aibou, _ are you ready?" Atem called as he trudged down the stairs. He'd had to change out of his work clothes and fix up his eyeliner, which was why Yuugi was done first.

"As I'll ever be!" Yuugi responded, and tried not to vibrate out of his skin as anticipation made it hard to stand still. Waiting for Atem to enter the room felt like a lifetime, and when he  _ did _ , Yuugi's heart skipped several beats.

Atem was  _ always _ pretty, but today it seems like he went all out- extra flashy jewelry in his pierced ears, a beautiful and likely extremely expensive leather jacket, and Yuugi swore he had to be wearing  _ some _ kind of lipstick. Where did he even get that?  _ When  _ did he even get that? 

He also wore his eyeliner in the style Marik had shown him back at the museum, and it really added an extra allure to his features. Yuugi realized a little belatedly that he was openly staring, and he smacked his cheeks with his palms, willing the heat in them to die down. His mother smugly sipped from her cup, as if she could tell what just went on in his mind. Atem himself, though, was a bit more oblivious. He probably took the staring the wrong way.

"Y-You look great," Yuugi's mouth was suddenly very dry. Atem pulled his red scarf up a little further, as though he were self conscious.

"So do you," he awkwardly replied, and Yuugi didn't know  _ where  _ to go with that… so they just ended up standing there in silence. Equally flustered and nervous. 

Yui cleared her throat. "You two still going out?"

"Uh- Yeah!  _ Yeah,"  _ Yuugi freed himself from the fog enveloping his brain and grabbed Atem's hand. He leaned over and opened the door, gesturing with a tip of his head. "Let's go, Atem." 

"Yes," Atem stiffly followed his partner all the way to the shop's door, and outside, without once looking back at Yui. 

Once they were outside and on the sidewalk, Yuugi paused and let go, stepping a few inches away when he realized he was too close. Atem blinked at him, unmoving.

"You didn't tell me where we were going, remember?" Yuugi gave a crooked smile.

"Oh. Right," Atem pulled out his phone that he still barely knew how to use and checked the time. "We're taking the bus, it should be passing by soon." 

"Is that so?" Yuugi hummed, eyes glinting mischievously. "Well then, let's go catch it!" He winked, then sprinted away, leaving a cloud of his swirling white breath behind him. The cold air nipped at his face and made him shiver, but he didn't stop running. He could hear Atem behind him, the clack of his heels on the cement and his gasps as he barely avoided stumbling because of the frosty sidewalk. It felt oddly calm. The weird animosity towards Atem that had been plaguing for the last day or so was gone, and he was glad it was.

He then had to swirl around and catch Atem before his partner face-planted and ruined his absolutely perfect face of makeup.

* * *

The bus ride is both uneventful and absolutely unbearable. Yuugi and Atem hardly talk, Atem content with simply staring out the window as snow began falling halfway into their journey. The close contact, however, has both of them on edge. There's something different about this, and they can both feel it. Yuugi kind of hates it. He hates feeling so uncomfortable around his partner, because it wasn't like that before! As one person, they were mostly in tune, and they'd share almost everything with each other.

Now, it felt like there was a wall between them. It was making Yuugi frustrated, and Atem horribly sad. He heard Atem shifting around in his sleep last night, troubled by his own mind, but Yuugi couldn't bring himself to do his usual routine of sliding into Atem's futon and comforting him. It just… felt wrong. Forbidden, almost. Like it suddenly hit him how they acted like way more than friends ninety percent of the time.

"Our stop is coming up next," Atem mumbled, and Yuugi tried to sneak a peek out of the window to catch where they were. "Hey, don't ruin the surprise," Atem placed a palm on his cheek and pushed him away.

"Come on," Yuugi whined. "I've been waiting all day."

"Therefore, a few more minutes will not kill you."

Those few minutes were spent in silence, after that. Yuugi didn't bother pressing the issue, and Atem was horrible at holding a conversation when he felt unsure of himself. So… they just sat, soaking up each other's warmth, occasionally bumping knees when adjusting their positions. Atem's expression wobbled in an odd way each time that happened.

The bus stopped, making Yuugi and Atem jerk forward slightly. His partner was up in an instant, so Yuugi followed suit, not asking questions as they stepped out into the cold winter air. Snow was still lazily falling all around them, and Yuugi stuck out his tongue. 

" _ Aibou _ ?" Atem looked at him like he'd lost his mind.

Yuugi caught a few flakes and shut his mouth, feeling them melt on his tongue. "Just having a taste." 

Atem  _ snorted,  _ and Yuugi took that as a win. "So, do you know where we are?" 

Yuugi frowned, surveyed his surroundings, then felt his heart leap. A large, circular building illuminated in the evening light awaited them right next to the bus stop. It didn't look too crowded right now, but there were a decent amount of people milling about. "Ice-skating?! I haven't gone in years!"

"Do you like it?" Atem asked, and  _ oh,  _ he was unsure. Yuugi could fix that. He grabbed Atem's hand, grinning, and walked them both towards the rink.

"Of course I do. It's very thoughtful," Yuugi praised him, and Atem hid behind the safety of his scarf. "Do you…  _ know _ how to ice-skate?"

"Um. Not… particularly."

* * *

Rented ice-skates on and ready, Yuugi was having a ball watching Atem cling to the side wall like his life depended on it. His hands slipped off every so often from how much he was sweating, causing him to yelp and twist as he lost his balance. "Having fun?"

"This is  _ nothing _ like roller-skating," Atem huffed under his breath, shimmying along step by step, ankles rocking side to side. Yuugi laughed and skated slowly at his side, steadying him whenever he had a harsh stumble. 

"There's similarities, but yeah, it's different."

Atem tried his best to stand up straight, but he wobbled too much and returned to his crouch. He bit his lip and furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm sorry. This was supposed to be enjoyable." 

"Don't feel bad, I'm having a great time!" Yuugi insisted, but he knew Atem didn't believe him. "Here, come on, grab my hand and stand up. At least if you fall we'll go down together, right?" 

" _ Aibou… _ " Atem took the offered hand reluctantly, then Yuugi placed his other on Atem's hip, successfully getting him standing. Now they were very, very close. Yuugi swallowed. Hard. Atem stared at the floor through foggy glasses.

"N-Now it's like roller-skating, keep your balance and push yourself forward." Yuugi instructed as he started to move, setting a decent pace so Atem could keep his hard-won balance. Yuugi's arm was still wrapped around him, and as they circled around the ice, Atem moved closer. He was pressed against Yuugi now, their heartbeats in sync and cheeks flushing. Yuugi felt like something important was about to happen, as Atem squeezed his hand and looked back at him, red eyes alight with the fire he often had in duels.

* * *

_ You can do this, you can do this,  _ Atem fought with himself as their eyes locked. His hand was clammy and shaking, and he was certain that it felt unpleasant for Yuugi, but his partner said nothing. They slowed to a stop as Atem stopped moving, and he swore the world around him ceased to exist. He opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again. Like a fish.

"Yuugi," the name felt foreign on his tongue, he so rarely used it, favoring  _ aibou _ out of habit _.  _ That got Yuugi's attention quickly.

"Yeah, Atem?" He was already breathless, Atem had  _ literally _ stolen his breath away. Mark  _ that _ one down on his list of countless victories...

"I…" Atem sighed, so desperately wanting to pull Yuugi into an embrace and bury his face in his chest… but he couldn't do that. Not when he was confessing something so monumental, so life-changing. "At some point, my feelings about you changed," He began, Yuugi comfortingly rubbing his thumb over Atem's calloused hand. Atem trembled, his bravado lost as he faced his other half. "E-Every time I look at you, hear you laugh, share an embrace… I feel more alive than I ever have." 

Plum eyes sparkled. "Me too," Yuugi choked out. Atem could see small tears collecting but not yet falling, and wondered if the tightness in his own throat meant he looked much the same.

"When I went to walk through that door," Atem wheezes, chest on fire. "I couldn't. I thought of a life without you and I  _ couldn't. _ " His glasses were fogging up even more as his breathing increased, hitching on barely contained sobs. "I love you so much that it pains me, Yuugi. I can't fight against it anymore." 

"Why… why were you fighting it?" Yuugi rubbed at his eyes, tears breaking free and streaming down his rosey cheeks. 

"I didn't want to ruin our bond," Atem let himself weep at the thought, and Yuugi pulled him in close. He greedily indulged, resting his head in the crook of Yuugi's shoulder. "I was so afraid that you would not feel the same, and that it would change things between us forever. I couldn't take the risk." 

Yuugi rubbed his back, and Atem clenched his fists in his partner's jacket. "What... made you change your mind?"

"Anzu-chan," Atem laughed a little. "She encouraged me."

" _ Fuck _ , I owe her one," Yuugi sighed shakily as he cursed, surprising Atem. "I love you, too. I have for a long time," He admitted. "The way you make me feel… it's like nothing I've ever experienced."

"Not even with Anzu-chan…?"

Yuugi nodded. "Not even with her." 

"Wow," Atem breathed. "I... don't know what to say?"

He  _ jumped _ as Yuugi not-so-subtly felt him up. "Well, you feel less tense. Did getting that weight off your shoulders help?"

"Y-You have no idea." 

Yuugi laughed, then pulled away with a small amount of regret. Atem almost got angry with him for breaking their embrace so soon. "I think I do. Anyways, we should get out of here… I don't really want to have a conversation like this in front of other people."

"Oh," Atem deflated. "Sorry." 

"No no no! Don't feel bad! This was a really cute idea and I liked it a lot, I  _ loved _ it, I just… wanna continue somewhere else." 

Atem nodded in understanding, and Yuugi tangled their arms together, carefully leading Atem off the ice. They were out there for maybe half an hour at the most, but honestly, renting those skates didn't feel like a waste of money. Not one bit.

* * *

They found a bench outside, away from most passerby, and settled in side-by-side. It was getting very cold this late into the night, but Atem felt impossibly warm as Yuugi ran his thumb over his leather-clad knuckles.

"I apologize if I came off too strong," Atem spoke first. He knew he had an eccentric way of expressing himself, their friends often teased him for 'speaking in poems' all the time. He couldn't help it, that's just how he talks!

"You came off just fine,  _ mou hitori no boku, _ " Yuugi assured him. "I think  _ I  _ came off too passive."

"No, you were fine," Atem leaned his head against Yuugi's shoulder, and twined their fingers together. His heart was calm, and so was Yuugi's, all previous anxiety gone. They were just enjoying each other's company. "What now?"

"That depends," Yuugi hummed. "Do you want to be together?"

"Do you even have to ask?  _ I  _ approached  _ you. _ "

"I guess so," Yuugi sighed and draped his head over the back of the bench, looking up into the twilight sky. Atem was longing for something deep within his soul as he observed his partner's beauty. It was only now that it came to him, what this constant desire must be. Subconsciously, he wet his lips.

" _ Aibou, _ " Atem dragged Yuugi's attention back to him. He placed his free hand on Yuugi's cheek, making no attempt to hide the way he glanced at his partner's mouth. "Can you… can we?" 

Yuugi nodded in awe, arm coming to wrap around Atem's waist. Atem slid his glasses up onto his head, moved his arm around Yuugi's shoulder, and all too rapidly, they were leaning into each other, lips connecting. Mist made from their breath swirled around them as their lips moved together, both of them horribly inexperienced. Atem bumped his nose a few times, and Yuugi accidentally smacked their teeth together painfully, but neither cared. The kiss was sending sparks down Atem's spine, and he buried his hand in Yuugi's hair to tug on it for leverage.

Atem let a small noise of desperation escape his throat as they parted for air, both gasping. A tiny string of saliva connected them for an instant before breaking. Yuugi looked wrecked, his gelled hair falling out of place from Atem's wandering hand.

"Your makeup is all messed up," Yuugi  _ pouted. _ Atem couldn't see himself, but he didn't doubt it.

"You're wearing a good chunk of it," Atem laughed, swiping his thumb across Yuugi's lipstick-smeared face. 

"When did you even  _ get  _ lipstick?" Yuugi scrubbed at his mouth with the back of his sleeve, likely trying to make himself presentable.

"On my break yesterday," Atem admitted bashfully. "I thought it would make me more appealing."

" _ Ugh,  _ you're hot enough already, adding more to it was just additional torture," Yuugi whined, pressing kisses around Atem's mouth. Now that they had kissed once, it was impossible to stop. The floodgates were wide open. 

" _ A-Aibou, _ " Atem stutters out between Yuugi's intense displays of affection, "We should be getting back-"

"Mama doesn't expect us back for at least an hour," Yuugi hummed against his skin, making Atem shiver. "One more for the road?"

"Greedy," Atem scoffed softly, their lips meeting once more regardless. He's embarrassed by all the little noises that escape him each time they stop to breathe, but Yuugi doesn't mind, so… it's okay. He can be open with his partner again. They don't have to hide from each other anymore. 

Atem doesn't know for how long they remain there on that bench, kissing and sharing quiet words as snow lands in their hair and dampens it. He just knows that he never wants the moment to end.

**Author's Note:**

> hi sorry this took eons to come out  
> at least if it takes a while again, you'll be tided over by the fact that they finally confessed. next part is the series finale!
> 
> for fun heres everyone in this series' implied orientations
> 
> atem - gay  
> yuugi - bi  
> anzu - uncertain  
> jonouchi - bi with heavily internalized homophobia and toxic masculinity  
> honda - claims to be straight  
> otogi - shamelessly gay  
> bakura - closeted gay  
> marik - gay  
> malik - SUPER MEGA gay
> 
> edit: adding my twitter to all my fics so you can follow me [here](https://twitter.com/chaosblast_)  
> edit 12/30/20: just going through this series and making sure things are consistent! also fixing some mistakes i noticed long after posting.


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